Roman Catholic priest Jean-Claude Jean-Philippe of Homestead, Florida was arrested Friday after police said he drugged and sexually assaulted a parishioner.
Jean-Phillipe, 64, is charged with sexual battery on a victim who was physically incapacitated. He was held at Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center and was released on $10,000 bond on Saturday. The press did not name an attorney for him.
State corrections officer Miya Bell of Homestead was arrested last weekend for allegedly driving under the influence while her children were inside her vehicle and resisting arrest.
Bell, 27, is charged with DUI, battery on a law enforcement officer, child abuse, and resisting an officer with and without violence. She is being held on $25,000 bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. The press did not name an attorney for her.
After the Supreme Court ruled last month that the Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment applied to states—essentially outlawing excessive police seizures—lawmakers in Alabama are moving forward with reforms of civil asset forfeiture in the state.
Civil asset forfeiture is the legal process where police can seize an individual’s property, cash, or any other assets if they are suspected of being used in a crime. In Alabama there are no requirements for law enforcement to report seizures, so the scale of civil asset forfeitures in the state is hard to assess. Additionally, in order to take an individual’s assets, law enforcement only needs to demonstrate the property’s involvement in a crime to the court’s “reasonable satisfaction.” This is a far lower bar than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” that is required in criminal cases.
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Alan Amir Yousefi of Irvine, California, was arraigned on February 25 and has been charged with ten felony counts—including two counts of insurance fraud—for failing to procure workers’ compensation insurance for his clients.
Yousefi, age 31, who was operating as Vanak Insurance Services, targeted small businesses and contractors in Southern California. Yousefi’s clients believed they were paying for workers’ compensation insurance coverage for their employees. An investigation by the California Department of Insurance shows that Yousefi issued fake certificates of coverage and kept the money for himself.
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Former South Broward High School band director Ricardo Esquilin is accused of starting a sexual relationship with a student.
Esquilin, 28, is charged with sexual battery on a minor and sexual assault by a custodian. The press did not name an attorney for him.
Criminal Defense and Civil Forfeiture Blog